


Teach Me

by sunflowerparker



Category: Tom Holland (Actor) - Fandom, tom holland - Fandom
Genre: Awkward Flirting, F/M, Fluff and Crack, Making Out, Marijuana, inexperience with kissing, stoner!tom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-15 22:15:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29565963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunflowerparker/pseuds/sunflowerparker
Summary: You’re inexperienced with a lot of things -- smoking and kissing being two of them. But that does not deter Tom from teaching you a thing or two when you end up staying over at his place after a night out.
Relationships: Tom Holland (Actor)/Reader, Tom Holland (Actor)/You, Tom Holland/Reader, Tom Holland/You
Comments: 4
Kudos: 14





	Teach Me

There’s a sheen layer of sweat covering your body as you step out into the cool night air. You can hear the bass thumping from outside of the club, and you can still feel the tingle of standing a bit too close to the speakers as you wait for the rest of your friends to exit the club.   
Your roommate, Katie, stumbles out moments later, arm around her boyfriend Harrison. They seem lost in each other, silly giggles spilling from their mouths as they cling to one another.  
It’s almost sickening how cute they are together, though you never deemed him her type at all. He tends to hang around a different crowd than you’re used to -- the chill group of skaters and stoners that like to linger outside of the university coffee shop you work at for most of the day. They seem nice, always smiling and saying a quick “sup?” if you happen to glance their way, but having never been around them longer than a few seconds to take their order, you have yet to formulate a real opinion of them. If they are anything like Harrison, though, you know you would get along with them well enough. Which is exactly what you’re hoping for when Harrison suggests swinging by his apartment as the three of you start to walk down the sidewalk.  
“Oh, yes. Can I please, y/n?” Katie asks.   
You chuckle at her whilst shaking your head. She hasn’t had that much to drink, but clearly enough to make her ask for permission like you’re her mum. “Well since you asked so nicely, yes,” you tease, winking at Harrison who seems just as amused at her question as you.   
“Perfect. It’s just a little ways up the road,” Harrison says. “And you’re welcome to come too, y/n.”  
“Oh, uh, I don’t want to intrude. It’s okay, don’t worry about it.”   
“Are you sure?” Harrison raises an eyebrow. “Tom is going to be there.”  
You feel your cheeks start to burn as you stare at the pavement in front of you, and Harrison’s airy chuckle only adds fuel to the fire under your skin.   
You have never held any conversation with Tom in your life other than taking his tea order. All you know is that he is Harrison’s roommate and he is attractive as hell. Everytime you walk past his group of friends hanging around the cafe, he nods his head at you, a sweet toothy grin on his face. And when he orders, he always passes you that same warm smile. It sends your heart racing and your words fumbling out of your mouth so bad you end up hardly saying anything at all for fear of sounding like an absolute moron in front of him. And despite your lack of conversation, Tom continues to say hello to you, driving your desire to speak to him higher and your capability of doing so even lower.   
Harrison caught on pretty quickly seeing as how every time he mentions his roommate around you, you suddenly go quiet and fixate on some random object trying to conceal a smile, and every time Tom is with him when they go to the cafe, your eyes don’t lift from the register. Has Harrison teased you relentlessly about it since he put two and two together? Why, yes. Yes he has. And clearly, tonight is no exception.  
“Oh come on, y/n. He’s a cutie. You should come too,” your roommate slurs, tripping a bit in the process.   
You sigh as you examine her state. She’s definitely in no condition to finish the walk to your flat and you can’t imagine it will be any better later, and you really do not want to walk back home alone in the dark. So you glance at Harrison who is wearing a cunning smile, and you roll your eyes as you concede to the offer. “Fine. I’ll come too, but only because I don’t want to walk home alone,” you huff, but not without biting back an excited grin.   
“Mhm, sure,” Harrison mumbles which earns a cutting glare from you.   
✵  
When you reach Harrison’s building, you guys take the elevator up to the floor of their flat, strolling down the hall behind the couple. But when Harrison walks past the apartment door, your brows furrow.   
“Um, Haz?” you ask.  
“Hmm?”  
“Where are we going?”  
As the three of you reach the end of the hall, Harrison opens the door to the building’s staircase. He points up as you file in behind Katie. “To the roof. Tom said that’s where he’d be. Unless of course you don’t want to see Tom. We can just go back-”  
“No, no. That’s fine,” you interject, fiddling with the hem of your dress as Harrison grins smugly. You clear your throat and try to act more composed. “Whatever is fine.”  
You try to play it off with a shrug, but even drunk Katie can see right through your nervous demeanour.   
“You’re so excited! Look at your little shy smile all for Tommy. He’s going to love you because I love you and you’re amazing and nice and kind-”  
She is still rambling when all of you reach the top of the stairs and Harrison opens the door leading to the roof. Your hand clamps over Katie’s mouth as she continues to mumble out reasons why Tom is going to love you for fear he might overhear. Then you feel something wet against your palm, and you yank your hand away with a groan.   
“Katie,” you whine. “What the fuck? You licked me.”  
You’re busy wiping off her spit from your hand as you glance around your new surroundings. The flat roof doesn’t have much of anything on it save for a couple of overturned crates and the boy you came up here for sitting on one of them, smoking--judging by the smell-- a blunt. Harrison makes his way to Tom, taking a seat on the other crate, pulling Katie onto his lap once the two of you meander over to them.   
Tom stands when you walk over, extending his arm out towards you for you to shake his free hand. When your clammy palm meets his warm one, he introduces himself. “Hey, I’m Tom.”  
He’s just as pretty up close as you imagined. He’s sporting a lip ring near the corner of the left side of his mouth, curly hair a tousled mess on top of his head, an intriguing unruly eyebrow accentuated by another piercing. The way he smiles at you lazily has your heart soaring as high as he probably is right about now.  
“Hi.” You clear your throat, embarrassed when your voice comes out squeakier than you anticipated. “I’m y/n.”  
As Tom’s eyes travel down your person and back up to your eyes, you find yourself frozen under his gaze. Your post-clubbing attire is a stark contrast to his lazy and comfortable forest green hoodie and dark jean combo. “You look familiar. Do we have a class together or something?”  
You did your first year, but that was before Katie and Harrison started dating. There’s no way he remembers that; he couldn’t possibly remember you unless it’s from the cafe. “Um, nope. I don’t think so.” You rock on your heels a bit, watching Tom nod his head slowly as if he’s still pondering where he might have seen you previously. “But I think I see you around the cafe right off campus a lot. I work there.”  
Tom lifts the blunt to his chapped lips, taking a long drag before releasing the smoke into the air away from you. It curls against the cool night air, and you watch with curiosity as he twists it around between his index and middle fingers. “Oh, cool. Yeah, I’ve probably seen you around then.”  
You pass him a small smile, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear as you nod in confirmation. “Yeah…”  
The conversation quickly fades, but Tom’s eyes remain hovering over your face as he takes another hit before he passes the joint to Harrison. Once the latter has taken a puff, he excuses himself and Katie when she complains of being tired, leaving you alone with Tom. Harrison slyly passes you a wink as the door to the staircase shuts behind him, and your nose wrinkles in frustration and nervousness at the prospect of another awkward conversation with the very attractive boy next to you.  
When you turn around, Tom is walking towards the edge of the building. He looks over his shoulder when he notices you have yet to move, motioning with his chin for you to follow suit. So you do, shuffling over to the lip of the building and taking a seat next to Tom. His legs swing over the side, and though you aren’t necessarily scared of heights, it’s not everyday you dangle part of your body over the side of a fairly tall building. But as Tom peers over at you with expectant raised brows, you take a deep breath of air and swing your legs over the side like he is sitting.   
It’s truly a breath-taking view -- the university town full of life on a lively Friday night, couples on dates, drunk friends stumbling from bar to bar. Despite the fear lingering in the back of your mind, it almost seems worth it as you take it all in with Tom smoking silently next to you.  
The quiet between you and Tom is actually comfortable, though it only persists for a few fleeting moments before he strikes up a conversation. “Do you smoke?”  
You look over with wide eyes, eyeing the dwindling stick resting between his lips. You have never even held one let alone smoked one, and while part of you wants to impress him and say you have, you know that if he asks you to smoke it, you would make an absolute fool of yourself if you tried. “Um… not exactly.”  
“Do you want to?” he asks hoarsely after another hit, taking the joint from his mouth and holding it out to you.   
Carefully taking it from his hand, you hold the blunt between your fingers, studying the way the small plume of smoke curls and dissipates into the night sky. “I don’t- I don’t know how,” you admit sheepishly.  
Tom smirks a little when he notices the way you’re eyeing the joint like it’s some sort of alien object, curiosity and maybe a bit of doubt floating in your eyes.  
“I can teach you if you want,” he offers. He doesn’t necessarily want to corrupt you or even pressure you to do something you might regret, but Tom has a sneaky feeling you’re a little more brave than you’re letting on.   
His suspicion is confirmed when you nod your head yes, passing the stick back to him. Tom scoots a bit closer so you can see what he is doing better.  
“Right, so you just hold it whatever way feels the most comfortable.” Tom demonstrates the way he likes to hold it. “And then you just put the end in your mouth and...” As he puts the blunt between his pink lips, his words become muffled. You watch as he hollows his freckled cheeks, taking a shorter inhale of the weed than he had before. Tom locks eyes with you as he opens his mouth for the smoke to drift out smoothly looking almost like silk before exhaling the rest in cloudy blur. “Suck and blow.”  
If he hadn’t punctuated the innuendo with a wink, you might have gotten away with the way your entire body burns hot under the weight of his stare. But as soon as you meet his daring dark eyes, you can feel your pulse racing, and you’re positive your eyes are as wide as saucers.   
Tom chuckles lightly as he hands it back to you, your fumbling fingers brushing against his steady, slender digits.   
“Don’t try to take too much at once. It won’t feel nice when you’re coughing up a lung.”  
You mumble a quiet “right” before drawing the joint to your lips and letting it rest against your mouth for a moment. When your gaze flits back to Tom, his bottom lip is caught between his teeth, ring of metal pulled between his taut lips. It’s all the encouragement you need to give it a go, hesitantly inhaling a tad, holding the bitter smoke in your mouth before releasing it with tiny restrained coughs.   
Tom’s smile grows as he watches, and you find his hand resting gingerly on your thigh when you finish coughing. “Good girl. Not too bad for your first toke.”  
You’re not sure how much time has passed when you find yourself sitting partially in Tom’s lap, his back resting against the lip of the roof, completely at ease. A shiver shakes your body when the cool breeze whips around you, and you huddle closer to Tom and his hoodie for warmth. His arms wrap around you almost instantly, and he pulls you the rest of the way on his lap. “You alright, love?” he asks sweetly.   
The joint is long gone, a vast variety of topics of conversations burned through. You feel completely comfortable with Tom already, something that usually takes a while for you when meeting new people. And as you sit on his jean-clad thighs with a little bit of weed in your system, you can’t help but be completely honest with him.  
“I’m perfect actually. Maybe a bit chilly, but content.”  
His warm hand rubs up and down your exposed arm as he leans in and kisses your cheek lightly. “Me too.”  
You giggle shyly when he pulls away, his bloodshot eyes fixating on the curve of your mouth, making you nervous that he might actually like you and might actually want to kiss you -- two things you definitely are not prepared for. Nuzzling into the crook of his neck, you press the cold tip of your nose against his hoodie to conceal your flustered state. But it’s Tom. He can read you like a book already.   
He chuckles airily, twisting his head to peer at you and the way you’re curled into his lap looking far too angelic for a girl he just met hours ago. “You’re adorable,” he whispers, placing another gentle kiss on your cheek, the cool metal of his lip ring brushing against your skin with the soft touch.   
And just like a drug, he’s hooked. Tom can’t help but continue kissing your face, peppering little caresses of his chapped lips all over your smooth skin, pulling heat to your cheeks and giggles from your lips. His hot breath fans against your face when he finishes his tender assault, confessing breathlessly, “I want to kiss you so bad.”  
You can sense your heart thundering in your chest despite how relaxed you are. You’ve never kissed anyone before. It’s not that you are against it or even waiting for the ‘right’ person. It just has yet to happen, and you’re okay with that though the waiting feels more like suffering at times.   
All of the waiting has apparently paid off, because now the gorgeous boy you happen to be sitting on is openly admitting to wanting to kiss you back.  
As much as you’re scared to death to have your first kiss with the boy you’ve grown to fancy over the last few hours, you’re feeling brave now that Tom has been straightforward with you, telling you that he wants it too. “Why don’t you?”  
Tom laughs lightly, his eyes following your movements as you reposition yourself so you’re straddling and facing him. “Because we’re stoned, darling.”  
“So?”  
When you place your hands on either side of his face, he closes his eyes for a moment, swallowing hard before fluttering his eyelashes back open slowly. “I don’t want you to regret anything.”  
“What if I told you I wanted to kiss you when I was sober,” you dare, your courage growing with your desire to kiss him. You can’t seem to take your eyes off the curve of his mouth, thin pink lips accentuated by the black metal ring that makes them look even more inviting.  
Tom laughs again, crinkles pulling at the corners of his beautiful eyes. Even with a little red in their corners, they appear sweet as chocolate.   
Flickering back to the corner of your mouth, just the look in Tom’s eyes teases you. He licks his lips slowly as he tilts his head. “Then we’ll have to wait and see.”  
You’re not ready to give up yet, so you try to show him how much you truly want to kiss him. You lean in close to his face, so close your noses brush against each other and you can feel every puff of air that leaves his parted lips. Your voice is small and hoarse as you whisper, “Please?”  
You can feel his chest heaving as he muses whether to give in to your pleas or not.  
“Fuck,” Tom breathes. You scoot even closer to him, but as soon as your lips are about to brush over his, he pulls his lips taut. “Baby girl, no.”  
Your head falls against his, your foreheads resting against each other. You groan dramatically. And you are not sure which is pulling at your heart worse -- the no or the new pet name Tom just gave you. Either way, it amuses Tom as he cups your face in his hands. “How about tomorrow morning if you haven’t changed your mind?”   
“Promise?” you ask, hopefulness readily apparent.  
“Promise.”  
You walk hand in hand down to Tom and Harrison’s flat, though he has to drop your hand to dig his keys out of his pocket. When you walk inside, you are greeted by a friendly black cat brushing up against your legs before it pads over to Tom and rubs its head against his calf.   
“It’s so cute!” you exclaim.  
“Yeah, she’s pretty adorable.” Tom bends down and picks up the cat, holding it close to his chest as it purrs contentedly. “This is Blaze.”  
You can’t help but laugh at the name -- fitting for the apartment and the fellow cohabitants with whom it resides.   
“Blaze likes to sleep in the bed with me so I assume she’s going to cuddle up with you tonight. Is that alright?”  
You stare at him and the cat, unsure of what to say. Your bottom lip catches between your teeth, and you start to fiddle with your hands. So he won’t kiss you but he’s expecting you to sleep with him?   
When Tom takes notice of the confused look on your face, he clarifies himself. “I’m assuming you’re staying here. You’re not exactly fit to walk home on your own. You can sleep in my bed, I’ll crash on the floor.”  
“Oh.” So he is a genuinely respectful guy after all. “Thanks, Tom.”  
“Yeah, it’s no problem.”  
After popping your head into Harrison’s room where Katie is already fast asleep, you let him know you’re crashing here for the night in case Katie is wondering where you are. He passes you a satisfied grin wishing you a good night, to which you roll your eyes at the underlying implication, closing the door behind you and walking into Tom’s room.   
He’s already laid out a blanket and pillow on the floor space next to the bed when you arrive, Blaze settled in the empty area his pillow was previously occupying. You pause in the doorway, studying the rest of the room. There’s a longboard leaning against the corner on one side of the room, a few knick-knacks and a bong littering the top of the dresser, a laptop covered in stickers sitting on his desk. It is simple yet intriguing as Tom is a much more complex person than his room is letting on.  
The sound of Tom’s voice draws your attention back to him laying on the floor now. “If you need anything just let me know. But you should probably get to sleep before you get super hungry.”  
You start to laugh. You don’t know why. Nothing he said was funny, but it sends you into a fit of giggles you can’t recover from. Your laughter spreads to Tom whose chest rumbles, and he pinches the bridge of his nose as you fall onto the bed in stitches.  
“Go to sleep, y/n,” he orders, but not without breaking out into another fit of laughter himself.   
When the two of you finally settle down long enough for silence to take over the room, your eyelids quickly grow heavy. The cold room is making it nearly impossible for you to fall asleep though.   
“Tommy?”  
He inhales sharply. He knows you can’t see him in the dark, but that doesn’t stop his cheeks from dusting rosy at the nickname. “Yes?”  
“Is it cold in here or is it just me?”  
If it was solely up to him, Tom would love nothing more than to slide into his bed alongside you and Blaze, holding you like he did on the roof earlier in the evening. It truly is a bit chilly in the flat, but he does not want to cross any lines just yet. He met you mere hours ago and you’re likely still feeling the effects from the weed you smoked earlier. “Do you need another blanket?”  
Nibbling on your bottom lip, you mull over if you should just say what you really want to say to him. In the end, you want it bad enough to actually ask for it. “Do you maybe want to sleep in the bed with me?”  
You can hear rustling as Tom sits up on his elbows. “Are you sure?”  
“Well you didn’t let me kiss you so you can at least keep me warm.”  
An amused snicker fills the air as Tom gets off the floor, putting his pillow back on the bed, picking the cat up and moving her closer to the edge of the bed so there’s room for him. He climbs in next to you, his strong arms instantly wrapping snugly around your waist as he spoons you.   
“Goodnight, y/n,” he whispers into your hair. But you’re already asleep, and he chuckles to himself as he watches the steady rise and fall of your chest for a few moments before he too closes his eyes and falls asleep.   
✵  
When you stir awake the next morning, you reach over to the side of the bed where Tom should be to find warm but empty sheets. You smile to yourself as you recall last night -- the rooftop, the undeniable connection you have with Tom, him refusing to kiss you for all the right reasons, the late night snuggles.   
When you take a deep breath and rub your eyes, you feel how dry your throat is, and your stomach quickly joins in on the party, grumbling loudly. You’re about to swing your legs over the side of the bed in search of water and some food when you hear two soft taps on the open door. You look up to see Tom in the doorway, a tall glass of water in one hand, a brown take away bag from the cafe in the other.   
“I thought you could use some food,” he says, handing you the goodies, sitting down on the mattress next to you.   
“Thank you. You didn’t have to do that.”  
“I wanted to,” he reassures with a smile.  
Quickly downing the entire glass of water, you set the empty cup on the nightstand, sitting up a little more in the bed.   
“So,” Tom begins, a cheeky grin tugging at the corner of his lips. “About last night…”  
Your cheeks burn furiously recalling how persistent you were trying to convince him to kiss you, and you pull your knees up to your chest as you study the way Tom looks all too amused at your reaction to that reminder. “I- I, uh-”  
“It’s okay, baby girl.” Tom rests his hand on your knee, rubbing his thumb over it soothingly to let you know that he isn’t going to pressure you into anything. “We don’t have to kiss. Just thought I’d ask.”  
He is about to stand from the bed when you reach out, grabbing a hold of his hand. “Wait! No, no. I do want to,” you admit rather hastily.  
Tom cocks his brow at you as you continue.   
“I’ve just never… you know, done that before.”  
His brows frown in surprise at your confession. “No? Never?”  
You gnaw on your bottom lip, shaking your head no. You don’t want Tom to judge you, you get enough of that from family members and friends that don’t seem to understand that life doesn’t always happen at the pace you want it to. With the way his features soften, you can tell he isn't though, and it puts you at ease as he scoots a bit closer to you on the bed, thumbing over the back of your hand.  
“Do you want me to teach you?”  
“Yes,” you mumble, biting back a nervous grin on your face as he starts to crawl towards you.  
Drawing his hand to your face, his thumbs smooths across your warm cheek. He gravitates closer, and you can clearly see the splattered freckles that litter his defined cheekbones. His sharp jaw shifts when your noses nudge, and you feel him inhale the hot air between the two of you.  
“Are you sure?” he asks, licking those enticing lips you can’t seem to pry your eyes off of.  
You nod. You want it. You want him. You want him to kiss you silly and leave you feeling as high as you were last night on the roof. “I’m positive.”  
“Tell me if you want to stop,” Tom breathes, warm breath already kissing your lips as they hover over yours. “Because I don’t think I’ll be able to stop kissing you once I start.”  
You suck in a breath as he closes the distance between you, pressing his lips against yours firmly. His lips are chapped and feel a bit rough against yours, but as soon as they linger for longer than a second, that is the last thing on your mind.  
The kiss is slow, closed mouths moving against each other as you get a feel for the sensation of your lips on someone else’s. But something in your gut tells you that you wouldn’t feel this way kissing just anyone. It’s Tom after all. He seems to know what he’s doing in addition to your undeniable connection, those two factors making your first kiss one you know you’ll never forget.  
After a few minutes you feel like you’re getting the hang of it and enjoying it quite a bit. Heat floods your body with each passing minute you lay on the bed, Tom’s lower half resting between your spread legs, lips fused together like the air in your lungs depends on it.  
As Tom’s hand travels to your waist, his fingertips dig into your sides, firm grip locked tight. You feel him start to pull away, but when his strong hand guides you with him, you realise he’s turning you over in the bed.  
You lay on top of him now, scooting up on your knees so you’re in a more comfortable position. And as you do so, Tom threads his fingers through your hair, a soft moan of yours muffled by his mouth as your clothed center settles on top of the zipper of his jeans.  
His tongue pushes past your parted lips and glides across your teeth when he hears the timid noise he draws from your mouth. His firm lips gently pry your mouth open more, allowing his wet muscle to slide against your own. The feeling is foreign at first, but not unwelcome in any way. It makes you feel connected to him — his touch, his kiss sending butterflies in your stomach soaring and fluttering. Your whole body feels hot under his touch, and you feel safe in his arms as your mouths move together.  
When Tom first feels you start to squirm against his straining jeans, he lets out a deep groan he couldn’t have possibly held back. And when it happens again, he bites down on your bottom lip, toying with the soft flesh to coax similar sounds from your mouth. He smirks at his success and slides his tongue across your bottom lip to soothe your kiss-swollen lips as he revels in the way you seem to be enjoying it so much.  
He pulls away for just a second, and he swears he hears you whimper. “Not too bad for a first kiss?”  
“Not at all.”  
Tom’s thumb swipes over your bottom lip before he grazes his own over yours teasingly. The room feels hot, and for a second you swear he’s about to smash his lips back against yours when an alarm on your phone starts going off. It buzzes loudly on the nightstand, and you have to climb off his lap to turn it off.   
“Shit. I’m going to be late for work.”  
You quickly scramble to find your shoes discarded somewhere in the room last night. When you spot them in the corner, you freeze. “Fuck,” you mumble under your breath, looking at the heels and then down at the dress you are still wearing.   
“Do you need some clothes?” Tom’s voice cuts into your intense moment of panic, notes of amusement laced in his words. When you turn around, he’s biting on his lip, restraining a chuckle.   
“This is not funny,” you whine.  
“I’m not so sure about that.”  
You grumble at yourself for being so stupid and forgetting you had agreed to take your coworker’s shift today so she could study instead whilst sliding on your shoes, holding onto the door frame for support. You will just have to make do and run back to your apartment for a quick change before heading to the cafe.   
Shuffling over to the nightstand to grab your phone, you give Blaze a pat on the head as she purrs sweetly watching you lose your mind trying to get yourself together in such haste.   
You don’t even bother addressing Tom who is leaning on his elbow studying you, amused. Besides, what are you supposed to say to him anyways? You just met him and he already taught you how to smoke and kiss. What does it all mean? To you, it means something, but for Tom? You couldn’t be sure, and you certainly do not possess the time to consider it as you almost run out the door of his bedroom and down the hall.   
“Wait,” he calls after you, scrambling to his feet when he realises you’re about to leave without so much as a goodbye.   
You don’t even look back, glancing down at your phone. You only have twenty minutes before you need to be clocked in and actively working. As much as you want to have the chat Tom is likely about to start, it will have to wait for another time.   
When you reach for the door handle to leave the flat, Tom’s hand clamps down over the knob before you can reach for it. You sigh out of impatience, reluctantly meeting his confused eyes that you suddenly hate yourself for being the reason behind. “Will I- will I see you again?” he asks softly.   
You hadn’t expected such a tender question, and it causes a smile to tug at the corner of your mouth. You nod your head a little, replacing his hand with yours on the door knob. “If you want to.”   
As you start to walk down the hall, you turn around after a few steps, peering back at Tom over your shoulder. Confidence surges through you, and you leave him smirking when you call out, “You know where to find me.”  
✵  
A tap on your shoulder interrupts you from filling a customer’s order.   
The cafe buzzes with a steady stream of people filing in and out of the shop constantly -- professors, students, anyone and everyone. You truly picked the wrong morning to cover someone’s shift. And to make matters worse, you’re trying and failing to fit the damned lid onto the to-go cup when the person taps on your shoulder yet again.   
“Here, let me do it. There’s some guy at the counter that wants you to take his order.”  
You glance over to your coworker in confusion, putting an embarrassing amount of effort into fitting the lid on the cup. “What? Why can’t you do it? I’ve been at the register since I clocked in.”  
He shrugs his shoulder. “I don’t know. Why don’t you go ask him.” Your coworker glances down at your struggle, taking over and snapping it on with ease. “I’ll handle this.”  
You release a breath of irritation before wiping your hands on your apron and walking up to the register. When you meet the deep brown eyes dancing with a playful glint, you feel your cheeks start to heat up. “What are you doing here?”  
Tom chuckles airly, eyeing your work attire with a quirk in his brow. “Cute apron. Do they let you take that home?”  
Your cheeks burn furiously, and you roll your eyes as a reluctant grin plays on your lips. “Shut up. What do you want?”  
He places a hand on his heart, jaw slacked in feigned offense. “That’s no way to treat a loyal customer.”  
“A loyal customer that almost made me late for work this morning.”  
“I’m not so sure that was entirely my fault, darling. But I can’t say I would be sorry if it happened again.”  
Your hand instinctively draws to your lips, sliding over the soft skin he christened with a kiss mere hours ago. You watch as his gaze tips to the curve of your mouth, the same thought clearly dancing in his mind.  
The door to the cafe chimes, grounding you back to earth, reminding you to either part ways with Tom or take his order. “Are you ordering anything?”  
He glances up at the menu, eyeing the options like he hasn’t been here a million times before. “I’ll have a medium coffee.” His hand slides into his front pocket to retrieve his wallet as you type it in on the register. “And your number.”  
Glancing up at him through your lashes, you nibble on your bottom lip, gazing at his smug grin. “I’ll see what I can do about that.”   
After he pays, you quickly pour his drink, scribbling your phone number on the side of the cup in black sharpie. Your coworker returns and takes over the register, helping the next customer to allow you to give Tom his coffee.   
“Thank you, baby girl,” he says when you slide it across the pick-up counter. He picks the cup up and spins it around until he finds what he’s looking for. He taps on the black ink as he meets your eyes. “I’ll be using this.”


End file.
